Muntinlupa to use Bokashi balls to clean Laguna de Bay 

The City of Muntinlupa is now using Japanese proven technology in its latest attempt to improve the overall quality of Laguna de Bay.

The city's Lake Management Office (LMO) in partnership with Rotary Club of Muntinlupa City Central and Rotaract Club of Alabang Bagong Paraiso recently launched "Project ADBOKASHI," a partner initiative to improve bodies of water in Muntinlupa and across the country, with a simple ceremony January 22 at the Muntinlupa City Fish Hatchery at Bayanan Baywalk.

Mayor Ruffy Biazon welcomed the cooperation of the City Government, Rotary, and Rotaract towards improving water quality in Laguna de Bay for the long-term, in relation to the Biazon Administration's 7K Agenda for the environment.

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More than 1,000 bokashi balls were released into the lake as part of a two-year experiment to see if the water quality would improve and to counteract the effects of rapid urbanization around the lake. The project will involve releasing bokashi into Laguna de Bay at least every six months with periodic water quality testing to be conducted by the LMO.

Bokashi balls are made of organic materials such as garden soil, effective microorganisms (EM1), molasses, and rice hulls that break down toxins and bad bacteria in water. Dubbed locally as "mabuhay balls," bokashi were also proven in Japan to deodorize bodies of water and reduce siltation. Recently, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) used these to improve the water quality in Boracay's wetlands as part of the rehabilitation of its beaches.

The organic "deodorizer" balls were introduced into the country by the Asian National Institute in Angono, Rizal, in 2008. Prior to the recent release into Laguna de Bay, 6,000 bokashi balls were first used in Muntinlupa in 2019 in Jamboree Lake in Poblacion, which is recognized as the smallest natural lake in the country.